Researchers report that observations of bright multiple transpolar auroral arcs across Earth's polar upper atmosphere and 3D global simulations together suggest that the auroral arcs are produced by plasma flow shears and electrical currents along Earth's magnetic field, arising from the drag of the supersonic plasma flow carried by the solar wind on the magnetosphere under a northward interplanetary magnetic field.
Article #20-00614: "Multiple transpolar auroral arcs reveal insight about coupling processes in the Earth's magnetotail," by Qing-He Zhang et al.
MEDIA CONTACT: Qing-He Zhang, Shandong University, Weihai, CHINA; e-mail: zhangqinghe@sdu.edu.cn
###
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences